Willian reveals why he snubbed Barca to join Arsenal

Arsenal star Willian has revealed he did have interest from Barcelona but one thing convinced him to join the Gunners instead.

Arsenal winger Willian says that the level of interest from Mikel Arteta and Edu persuaded him to join the Gunners despite apparent interest from Barcelona.

The former Chelsea star says that while there was no official move from Barca for his signature, but there has been some interest from the La Liga side dating back to a number of years now.

Willian joined the Gunners from London rivals, Chelsea, in pre-season and has since played eight times in the Premier League for his new team.

Before signing for Mikel Arteta’s side, it was reported that the Brazilian could have been on his way to Camp Nou. These rumors started to surface all the way back from 2017.

However, Willian has admitted that he chose to commit to Arsenal because there of the significant interest from Arteta and Edu.

“From my first chat with Mikel Arteta and Edu, they always showed huge interest in having me on board,” he told FourFourTwo.

Willian: "From my first chat with Mikel Arteta & Edu, they always showed huge interest in having me on board. That was really important, as it showed their respect for me as a professional, but also showed their conviction in what they are trying to achieve at the club" #Arsenal pic.twitter.com/LUERFIBXlz
— Gurjit (@GurjitAFC) November 29, 2020

“That was really important, as it showed their respect for me as a professional, but also showed their conviction in what they are trying to achieve at the club.

“Arsenal told me how I’d fit in there and how they saw me helping them to reach their goals. I could see that Arsenal were on the right track, and I’m delighted to be here.”

Willian continued about reported interest from Barcelona, adding that he was aware of it all.

“There are always rumours, but I didn’t know about any other official offer [from Barcelona],” he continued.

“Indeed, there was a lot of talk about Barcelona for the past few seasons, but I wouldn’t have gone there just because they’re Barca. I wouldn’t go to any club without hearing about their targets and what they wanted from me.

“It wouldn’t be nice to be there or anywhere else if you weren’t going to be a big part of the project and didn’t play much. Arsenal were the only club to show me a project that would fit with my ambitions, and they’re one of the biggest clubs in the world.”